The John Lennon Educational Tour Bus, the premier non-profit mobile recording studio and HD production facility, will kick-off its 15th year of bringing music education to students nationwide, with a special birthday party at the 2012 NAMM Show. The Bus will be unveiling a new arsenal of equipment for the 2012 year, including Avid® Pro Tools®|HDX, and live streaming capabilities made possible by NewTek and TodoCast that will allow the whole party to be seen live viawww.lennonbus.org.

Hosted by Principal Sponsor, Avid, along with Neutrik USA, DR Strings, Fishman, Ampeg and Mix magazine, the event will feature a performance by music legend Bootsy Collins joined by an array of special guests including Earth, Wind & Fire bassist Verdine White, fellow band mate from the Parliament-Funkadelic and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Bernie Worrell.

Bootsy Collins has a rich history of supporting music and arts education through his own Bootsy Collins Foundation, and teamed up with the Lennon Bus in 2011 to produce an original song and music video with students from Austin, TX. Collins loved the track so much that he is now using the song to open all of his live shows. Check out the video here.

In addition to live music, the celebration will include remarks from John Lennon Educational Tour Bus’ Co-Founder and Executive DirectorBrian Rothschild,NAMM CEO Joe Lamond, Avid’s Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing Ron Greenberg and President of Neutrik USA Pete Milbery.

“The Lennon Bus has celebrated many milestones at the NAMM Show, so it is very exciting to be kicking off our 15th year with this incredible line-up of performers and speakers, who all share the common goal of keeping music education alive,” says Brian Rothschild.

“We are so proud to a principal sponsor of the John Lennon Educational Tour Bus and congratulate the organization on 15 years of making a real difference in music education,” added Ron Greenberg, Avid Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing. “Avid, with the John Lennon Bus team, is proud to be able to bring to thousands of students the chance to work in a first class mobile audio and video production studio, and use the same state-of-the-art technology that professionals around the world use.”

The NAMM Show will also unveil the 2012 Lennon Bus which has received a number of notable hardware, software and equipment upgrades that will continue to keep the mobile recording studio and production facility on the frontlines in multimedia technology. Thanks to Principal Sponsor Avid, the Bus is now equipped with new Avid Pro Tools|HDX and Pro Tools|HD Native systems, the leading recording technology available on the market today, making workflows better, faster and easier than ever. The Lennon Bus studios continue to be powered by Apple with new iMacs, Mac Minis, and dozens of MacBook Pros. New for 2012 will be the addition of several iPad 2s, which will allow participants in the creative production workshops to utilize apps such as Avid Scorch and accessories like the Keystation Mini 32. Providing live streaming capabilities for the 2012 tour are NewTek and TodoCast. Newtek’s TriCaster 850 Extreme with the TriCaster 850 CS will provide live switching of 8 HD video sources, discreet recording of each source in addition to program output, live keying, and compression for real-time web streaming. TodoCast has partnered with the Lennon Bus to provide a roof-mounted satellite dish and high quality connectivity to facilitate live video streaming of special events throughout the year.

The John Lennon Educational Tour Bus is a non-profit state-of-the-art mobile Pro Audio and HD video recording facility that provides hands-on experiences for students of all ages. In its 15th year of touring, the venture is proud of its fully professional bus and its studios, which boast the latest audio and video technology, gear and products. The concept began as an offshoot of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, which is dedicated to providing opportunities for both professional and amateur songwriters around the world. The Bus travels across the U.S. and Canada year-round, providing free tours and workshops at schools, retailers, festivals, on tours with headlining artists, and at major industry conferences.

Avid creates the digital audio and video technology used to make the most listened to, most watched and most loved media in the world – from the most prestigious and award-winning feature films, music recordings, television shows, live concert tours and news broadcasts, to music and movies made at home. Some of Avid’s most influential and pioneering solutions include Media Composer®, Pro Tools®, Interplay, ISIS®, VENUE, Sibelius®, System 5, and Avid Studio. For more information about Avid solutions and services, visit www.avid.com, del.icio.us, Flickr, Twitter and YouTube; connect with Avid on Facebook; or subscribe to Avid Industry Buzz.

About the Bootsy Collins Foundation

“Say It Loud An Instrument For Every Child”

The Bootsy Collins Foundation serves to promote learning by offering opportunities for all to experience life through music programs and career opportunities. The Bootsy Collins Foundation will focus on providing a means of reaching youth, teens and adults through fun, constructive musical and educational activities – instilling confidence and character necessary for them to grow into productive members of society and become responsible adults.